名人教英文 – 汽水沒了汽…It’s gone flat

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01/03/2011

名人教英文 – 汽水沒了汽…It’s gone flat 毛孟靜

汽水沒了汽, 英文是The soda has gone flat。Flat, 扁平, 沒了汽,不再脹卜卜。任何有汽的飲品漏了汽,不再fizzy(嘶嘶聲的),不再bubbly ( 有泡的) , 包括香檳,都可說It’s gone flat。

I’m afraid the bottle of champagne has gone flat, 這瓶香檳恐怕已沒了汽。

心水清的讀者可能已注意到,怎地一開頭說的汽水, 不叫soft drink,而叫soda?Soda 是美國人對汽水的統稱, 由他們的兒歌及童話,就可見soda 一字的流行。於是,下次有人問你:Would you like some soda?不要誤會對方只是要請你喝「梳打水」,而是除香檳外,任何有汽的飲品——不淨是有牌子的如可樂、七喜等汽水, 且包括fizzy lemonade, 有汽的檸檬汁之類。

Fizzy 一字,亦可作名詞,即等於汽水或香檳。I’d like some fizzy =I’d like something fizzy = I’d like some fizzy drink。

但這樣說,人家或會一、問你要汽水抑或香檳,或二、開門見山向你抱歉說沒有香檳。於是為說得清楚一點, 最後不如多加一字,non-alcoholic(不含酒精的)。

但日常對話,務求方便易明,今日的英語世界也不再囉嗦。一般人的理解,fizzy 就是汽水,而香檳,就是bubbly。

She has one glass too many of bubbly, 「她多喝了香檳」,指她已有醉意。

有汽的飲料, 是指carbonated( 含二氧化碳的) 。Carbonated water 就是有汽的清水,自然入了樽,以瓶裝出現,賣得很貴;亦叫fizzy water 就可以。

Carbonated = aerated, 意思一樣。

要說沒了汽、泄了氣,汽水等講flat,一個原該好笑卻終歸不好笑的笑話,可說the joke went flat。

氣球、車胎等漏了氣, 一般說deflate。當然, 一條輪胎全然扁了,就是a flat tire。

但人的泄氣, 不說flat, 講deflate。

He was deflated by her negative remark,因為她的負面話,他泄了氣。

 

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